Many different sports require athletes to master skills of passing and catching a ball before the athletes can effectively compete in their sport or physical activity, such as baseball, soccer, softball and basketball. Typically, several athletes will practice together to hone their skills in the particular sport or activity they wish to play. Many times, however, it may be difficult to find a partner to practice passing or catching a ball.
A number of devices have been developed to allow an individual athlete to practice passing, throwing, pitching, kicking, hitting and catching a ball alone. Some of these devices provide a vertical surface toward which an athlete can throw or pass a ball. The vertical rebound surface typically functions as a backstop and, in some cases, is capable of returning or rebounding the ball at least a portion of the distance back to the user. In other cases, the elastic nature of the ball may contribute or allow the ball to be returned at least a portion of the distance back to the athlete. These devices are designed to accommodate a somewhat horizontal movement of the ball through the air and rarely return the ball back to the athlete with enough force to allow the users to practice their catching and reaction skills related to the specific sport or activity at hand.
Some rebounding surfaces may be adjusted from vertical by setting a different angle between the frame supporting the net and the brace frame or legs. Some rebounding frames require screw fasteners to be removed and reinserted into brackets to adjust the angle of the rebound frame. Pieces can be lost and aligning fasteners with holes in multiple parts can be difficult.
Improvements to pitching and kicking practice nets continue to be sought.